ISLAMABAD, July 8: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief coordinator Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday said recent political developments in Pakistan had heightened international community's concerns and uncertainty over the fate of democracy in the country , which would have serious and negative consequences for the investment climate.
He was talking to media persons after his return from the US and Saudi Arabia, during which he attended Harvard University's two-week "Leaders in development" programme.
Mr Iqbal said, "It is tragic that Gen Musharraf has tied the future of the country to his personal power at a time when we need strong national institutions more than ever. Gen Musharraf has undermined all national institutions which have become more dysfunctional during the last five years."
The PML-N leader said there were 32 developing countries represented in the Harvard University conference on "Managing political and economic reforms" and all were very focused on international trade and development issues as top priority in their countries, while in Pakistan it was a pity that the number one issue was the uniform of Gen Musharraf and musical chair of prime ministers.
In the conference, he said, out of over 50 reform-related initiatives submitted by the participants, Pakistan's Programme- 2010 of Nawaz Sharif government was selected as a model. The participants regretted that such a programme became a victim of political change in the country.
"The removal of Zafarullah Khan Jamali has once again proven the concerns of the opposition that with the restoration of presidential power to dismiss parliament, Aiwan-i-Sadr would become a conspiracy centre against democratic leadership." Gen Musharraf used this power to blackmail and force the PML-Q into ditching its own prime minister, he added.
He said, "Shaukat Aziz's by-election is a great joke with the country. The irony is that the millionaire finance minister filed his nomination papers in an official file-cover, which is clearly visible in all the pictures published in the press."
"If he can't purchase a Rs5 file-cover for filing nomination papers where is the money going to come for his election campaign. It is not a wild guess. It would be in the fitness of things if the chief election commissioner issued an advance notification declaring Mr Aziz successful to save everyone from hassle of the farce by-elections because in his presence the dream of fair, free and transparent elections is impossible," he said.